Arrested OpenAI engineer says he previously advised the Saudi government

More details are emerging: The OpenAI engineer arrested for allegedly bugging a company meeting room last week says he’s advised Saudi government agencies on tech in the past, The New York Times reports. He’s also listed as a partner at a Riyadh venture firm.

Why that matters: US officials are worried about foreign governments spying on American AI labs. The room Abdulrahman Alfozan allegedly bugged was used for leadership meetings and briefings with government officials, per the Times.

But: He hasn’t been charged with spying or with working as a foreign agent, only with secretly recording conversations. OpenAI says it found no evidence that Alfozan took model weights, source code, or customer data.

Alfozan had booked a one-way ticket to Saudi Arabia for himself and his family before he was arrested on 9 October, prosecutors claim. A judge denied him bail on Monday, Fortune reports.

Washington’s take: Both corporate and state-sponsored espionage are “realities,” and US companies “need to be wary,” Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton told CNBC.

MEANWHILE, in the UAE: Sharjah Police have taken down four international cybercrime gangs that allegedly laundered AED 8.83 bn, Gulf Business reports. Police arrested 33 suspects and said the gangs used AI tools to help with phishing and online fraud.